Diked & Spill Protection
A diked area is defined as an area bounded by
contours of land or a physical barrier that retains a
fuel to a depth greater than 1". At many
manufacturing or storage facilities, the flammable
liquid storage area can be a number of small tanks
within a common diked area. Pipe rack
arrangements and pumps often surround these
tanks. In instances like this, the total dike area and
not the storage tanks could be considered the
hazard to be protected by a suitable fixed foam fire
protection system. This could be achieved by using:
• Low-level fixed mount foam makers
• Monitors
• Foam-water spray nozzles or a foam sprinkler
system over the hazard area
• Supplementary support with portable foam
application equipment should also be available
For flammable liquids requiring AR-AFFF type foam
concentrate, the discharge duration shall be 30
minutes with the application rate as recommended
by Chemguard's engineering department.
If the dike to be protected is located outdoors,
additional considerations should be made during
the design stage when using either a monitor or
foam/water sprinkler system. Climatic conditions
such as wind or rain, can affect the performance of
these systems. It may be necessary to increase the
application rate to compensate for the adverse
conditions. If within the dike area there is many
obstructions that could impede the performance of
the overhead or monitor system, supplementary low
level foam discharge devices may be required.
If an overhead foam-water sprinkler system is used
it should be designed per NFPA 16: Installation of
Foam-Water Sprinkler and Foam-Water Spray
Systems. The application rate for AFFF on
hydrocarbon fuels is .16 gpm per square feet. On
products that are water miscible/polar solvent, the
application rate may increase.
CHEMGUARD
204 S. 6th Ave • Mansfield, Tx 76063 • (817) 473-9964 • FAX (817) 473-0606
www.chemguard.com
DATA SHEET #D10D03200
REVISION: 09/2005
DIKE PROTECTION
FIXED MOUNT LOW LEVEL FOAM MAKERS
As the primary protection system for a dike, it shall
be designed in accordance with the following:
1. A foam solution supply pipe should be installed
on the outside perimeter wall of the dike and at
equally spaced intervals also mounted on the
outside wall.
2. Foam makers are attached to the supply pipe.
3. Both the Chemguard Model CGFM 1.5 and
CGFM 2.5 foam maker should have a minimum
of 12" of straight pipe upstream from the foam
maker inlet.
4. The discharge pipe from each foam maker is
designed to allow for an increase in foam
expansion and decrease the velocity of the
discharging foam, which will then supply a low
velocity mass of foam uniformly over the dike
area.
On the discharge side of the Chemguard Model
CGFM1.5 foam maker, it is recommended that:
• A length of 3" diameter pipe be connected to
the foam maker outlet and used as the
discharge pipe.
• This pipe should have a minimum length of 28"
with a maximum of 100" and shaped to
discharge the foam against the inside wall of
the dike at approximately 12" above the
maximum expected level of any flammable
liquid spill.
• With the Chemguard Model CGFM 2.5 foam
maker the recommended diameter of the
discharge pipe is 4" with the minimum length
being 28" and the maximum 120".
The maximum spacing between fixed mounted MONITOR PROTECTION
foam makers is 30 feet when the discharge rate
If foam monitors are used as the primary protection
from each foam maker is 60 gpm or less and no
method, they should be located outside the dike
point within the dike area should be more than 30
area. If non air-aspirating type nozzles are used or
feet from any discharge outlet. If the flow rate is
the monitor has a high velocity discharging stream,
above 60 gpm, the maximum distance between
it should be directed against the dike wall, tanks, or
each foam maker around the dike perimeter can be
other structures within the dike to lessen the impact
increased to 60 feet with no point within the dike
of the discharging foam stream on the fuel surface.
being more than 60 feet from any discharge outlet.
Application rate and discharge duration shall be in
Large dike areas are permitted to be subdivided to
accordance with the chart for fixed foam application
keep the total design solution within practical limits.
discharge devices.

Figure 11: Example of Dike Protection System Figure 12: Example of Dike Protection System with
using foam makers foam monitors

The minimum application time and discharge durations for fixed foam application discharge devices on
a diked area involving hydrocarbons are per the following table.

Type of Foam Minimum Application Rate

Minimum Discharge Time (min.)
Discharge Outlet Class I CLASS II
gpm/ft2 [(L/min.)/m 2] Hydrocarbon Hydrocarbon
__________________________________________________________________________________

Fixed low-level
foam discharge outlets 0.10 (4.1) 30 20
Foam monitors 0.16 (6.5) 30 20
__________________________________________________________________________________

CHEMGUARD
204 S. 6th Ave • Mansfield, Tx 76063 • (817) 473-9964 • FAX (817) 473-0606
www.chemguard.com
DATA SHEET #D10D03200
REVISION: 09/2005
 CHEMGUARD
204 S. 6th Ave • Mansfield, Tx 76063 • (817) 473-9964 • FAX (817) 473-0606
www.chemguard.com
DATA SHEET #D10D03200
REVISION: 09/2005
 CHEMGUARD
204 S. 6th Ave • Mansfield, Tx 76063 • (817) 473-9964 • FAX (817) 473-0606
www.chemguard.com
DATA SHEET #D10D03200
REVISION: 09/2005
 CHEMGUARD
204 S. 6th Ave • Mansfield, Tx 76063 • (817) 473-9964 • FAX (817) 473-0606
www.chemguard.com
DATA SHEET #D10D03200
REVISION: 09/2005